July 26, 2017 – A prisoner incarcerated at the Penal Farm for drug offenses pled guilty Tuesday to using a smuggled cell phone to import…

Kendrick Watson, 37, one of many defendants in the case, pled guilty to money laundering and introduction of contraband in a penal institution. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison by Criminal Court Judge Bobby Carter.

Investigators said that during July, August and September last year Watson imported contraband items and the sold them to other inmates for profit. To pay for the contraband, inmates had friends or family members purchase money orders or cash cards which would be transferred to Watson or to one of his associates on his behalf.

To date, 12 of the 18 defendants indicted in the case have pled guilty.

The case was handled by Asst. Dist. Atty. Austin Scofield of the DA’s Multi-Agency Gang & Narcotics Prosecution Unit that handles violent crimes and other offenses associated with gang activity, specific targeted gang members and special cases assigned by the District Attorney General.

“With our elderly population growing each year, increasing the awareness of and taking actions against elder abuse has become more important than ever,” said Gen. Weirich. “Stopping elder abuse will take the best efforts of all of us, and this awareness campaign aims to sound the alarm.”

Mirroring national trends, Shelby County’s 65-and-older population increased 18 percent between the 2010 census and July of 2015 when elders in the county totaled more than 113,000 of the county’s 938,000 total population.

Two years ago the Memphis Plough Foundation contributed $3.4 million to fund anti-elder abuse programs.

“People can be hesitant to report elder abuse because it’s embarrassing,” said Renee Bouchillon, Adult Protective Services Program Director. “But, reporting elder abuse is the right thing to do, and it is the lawful thing to do. Preventing elder abuse can be as simple as picking up the phone, whether that’s to check in on a neighbor or file an anonymous report.”

TNDAGC received funds from the Tennessee General Assembly in 2016 to combat elder abuse statewide by training prosecutors and other law enforcement professionals, and producing public awareness resources.

“Protecting vulnerable Tennesseans, especially the elderly and incapacitated, is a priority,” said Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris, R-Collierville, who was the prime sponsor of the Elderly and Vulnerable Adult Protection Act which passed during the recent legislative session. “It is important that the state continue to support this work, and I appreciate the support of our District Attorneys.”

The training – a three-day, multidisciplinary seminar attended by prosecutors, criminal investigators, victim witness coordinators, DHS staff members and others in the statewide law enforcement community – was held in November of last year.

Once the training was complete, TNDAGC began work on the project’s public education component.

Printed materials, digital graphics and short videos feature Bouchillon, Tennessee Voices for Victims co-founder Valerie Craig and Amy Nix, whose mother was a victim of financial abuse, to share warning signs associated with different forms of elder abuse ranging from physical to financial and neglectful abandonment.

Legislative action in 2016 and 2017 by the Tennessee General Assembly created more tools for prosecutors to fight elder abuse. In 2016, another law sponsored by Sen. Norris was enacted with TNDAGC’s support establishing Vulnerable Adult Protective Investigative Teams (VAPIT) in each of the state’s 31 judicial districts.

The teams foster information-sharing between government agencies tasked with protecting the elderly.

This year’s General Assembly produced legislation classifying financial crimes against the elderly as theft. The classification allows authorities to better define, discover and put a stop to financial exploitation of the elderly.

“Last November’s training laid the foundation for the work we are now doing to educate the public about elder abuse,” said Gen. Amy Weirich. “Our next challenge will be to secure funding for victim witness support staff. When victims come forward, we must be confident that we have adequate levels of support staff in place to see them through this sensitive process.”

Tennesseans can visit www.tndagc.org/ElderAbuse to download materials and find District Attorney contact information, and can visit www.facebook.com/TNDistrictAttorneys to join the conversation.

Tennessee state law requires reporting of suspected abuse of a vulnerable or elderly adult.
Call 1-888-APS-TENN (277-8366) or visit https://ReportAdultAbuse.dhs.tn.gov to make an anonymous report.

TNDAGC was created by the Tennessee General Assembly in 1961 to provide for a more prompt and efficient administration of justice in the courts of this state. It is composed of the District Attorneys General from the state’s 31 judicial districts. The District Attorneys General are elected for terms of eight years and are responsible for the prosecution of criminal cases on behalf of the state. www.tndagc.org

The Tennessee Department of Human Services is responsible for administering numerous services throughout Tennessee, including Families First, the state’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, Food Stamps (known as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP), Child Support, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Assistance, Adult Protective Services, and Rehabilitation Services. With 133 office locations, DHS is one of the few state agencies with offices in all 95 counties. www.tn.gov/humanservices

Tennessee Voices for Victims seeks to create a statewide support network to help victims of crime unite their voices, navigate the criminal justice system, connect with direct service providers, and become advocates for themselves and other victims. www.tnvoicesforvictims.org

MEMPHIS – Jan. 13, 2017 - Two Memphis teens have been convicted of robbing a Macon Road store owner who recognized them as regular customers,…

A Criminal Court jury deliberated six hours before convicting Tyler Brooks, 19, and Tavares Jackson, 18, of aggravated robbery. They will be sentenced next month by Judge Bobby Carter.

The incident began around 11 p.m. on Aug. 21, 2015, when a security alarm was tripped at the grocery store and market in the 6800 block of Macon Road in the Cordova area.

The owner drove to the location and saw broken glass on the floor from a side window and other damage. As he headed back to his vehicle he was confronted by two males, one of whom was armed with a handgun.

He said the suspects covered their faces with bandanas, but that he recognized them by their eyes and their voices as regular customers in his store. The two robbers took his cell phone and money and then fled.

Police detained the two suspects a short time later, and the victim identified them as the two who had just robbed him.

MEMPHIS – December 6, 2016 - A man who chased down his former girlfriend and shot her numerous times in her vehicle at Halle Stadium…

Defendant Vernon Walton was sentenced to 16 years in prison by Criminal Court Judge Bobby Carter after entering his plea just before a jury was to be picked for his trial Monday. He must serve at least 85 percent of his sentence before release.

The incident occurred the night of Sept. 19, 2013, when the victim was driving to Halle Stadium on Mt. Moriah to meet her sister who was attending a candlelight vigil for a Ridgeway High School student who had died.

Investigators said Walton, 33, followed her onto the parking lot, walked up to her car and began shooting her through the driver’s side window. As the woman tried to crawl out of the vehicle, Walton walked around to the passenger side and shot her several more times. Walton then fled on foot, but was chased down by police and security officers who recovered a .45-cal. handgun from him.

The woman, who had filed for an order of protection against Walton that day, had 14 entrance and exit wounds from her face to her thighs, but survived her injuries. She spent a month in the hospital, continues to receive treatment and still has two bullets in her body. She is now 27.

The case was handled by Chief Prosecutor Theresa McCusker and Asst. Dist. Atty. Meghan Fowler, both of the DA’s Domestic Violence Prosecution Unit which handles felony cases of domestic assault and homicide committed by intimate partners.

The DVPU works closely with the Shelby County Family Safety Center to provide services and assistance to domestic violence victims and their families.

MEMPHIS – May 26, 2016 - A Rossville man convicted of raping one woman in 2012 has been convicted of raping another in an attack…

Defendant Michael Richardson, who has several other rape trials pending, faces 15 to 25 years in prison with no parole when he is sentenced in June by Criminal Court Judge Bobby Carter.

Richardson, 37, who is serving a 22-year sentence with no parole for a rape conviction two years ago, was convicted this week of aggravated rape in an attack that occurred on July 6, 2012.

Investigators said Richardson and an unidentified companion offered a woman a ride as she was walking home from a bus stop in 100-degree temperatures.She got in the car, but the men passed her house and Richardson got in the backseat where he punched her in the face and threatened to cut her throat if she did not perform oral sex on him.

After she complied, Richardson and the driver changed places and the victim was forced to perform sex on the unidentified assailant.

The victim then was driven to a remote area of Shelby County where she was forced out of the car, raped by Richardson and the other assailant and then left in a field.

She was helped by two motorists who saw her walking along Tennessee Highway 385 and Macon Road.

Richardson was identified through his DNA from the victim’s rape kit.

His DNA has linked him to several rapes that occurred in July, August and October of 2012.

In each case, the victim was picked up along Summer Avenue, raped and forced out of the car in rural East Shelby County.Two victims from cases not being tried this week were in the courtroom, but did not testify.

The case this week was handled by Asst. Dist. Atty. Josh Corman of the DA’s Special Victims Unit (SVU) which prosecutes cases of child sexual abuse and severe physical abuse of child victims; rape and aggravated rape of adult victims, and abuse of elderly and vulnerable adults.

MEMPHIS – April 27, 2016 - A woman motorist who drank alcohol and smoked marijuana before killing a pedestrian two years ago in Orange Mound…

Curteria Luellyn, 23, was sentenced to eight years for vehicular homicide involving intoxication and one year for leaving the scene of an accident involving death.Next Tuesday she will ask Criminal Court Judge Bobby Carter to suspend some or all of the sentence.

The victim, Curtis Echols, 59, was killed around 8:30 p.m. on March 29, 2014, as he was walking on the sidewalk in the 1500 block of Hugenot near Deadrick.

Luellyn lost control of the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu she was driving, jumped the curb and struck Echols. She drove away from the scene, but was arrested the following day.

The case is being handled by Asst. Dist. Atty. Michael McCusker of the DA’s DUI Prosecution Task Force which works with law enforcement to reduce drunken driving-related fatalities and injuries in Memphis and Shelby County.

Task force members also conduct training sessions designed to keep law enforcement officers updated on new laws and changes in existing laws related to DUI offenses.

MEMPHIS – April 8, 2016 - A Millington motorist said to be swerving so much she had 18 cars behind her has been convicted of…

A Criminal Court jury on Thursday convicted Rhonda Jeanne Warner after deliberating for less than an hour. She will be sentenced May 6 by Judge Bobby Carter.

Warner, 45, was arrested around 11:30 p.m. on Sept. 13, 2014, after an off-duty Memphis police officer saw her driving erratically while northbound on U.S. Highway 51 approaching Millington.Her speed varied from 35 mph to 55 mph and then back to 35 mph, and when anyone attempted to pass, Warner swerved into the passing lane to block them, the officer reported to a Millington dispatcher. Soon, a long line of cars was behind her.

Warner was arrested by Millington officers on Navy Road after she had gone through a Taco Bell and continued to drift between lanes of traffic.They testified that Warner appeared to be drunk and that they found a nearly empty bottle of whisky in her car along with a cup of ice with a brown liquid that smelled like whisky.

The case was handled by Billy Bond, chief prosecutor of the DA’s DUI Prosecution Task Force that seeks to reduce DUI-related fatalities and injuries in Shelby County.

Task force prosecutors conduct training sessions to keep law enforcement officers updated on new laws pertaining to the operation of motor vehicles.

MEMPHIS – March 11, 2016 - A man who shot at police officers during a standoff at his North Memphis home two years ago was…

Misael Chica-Arguenta, 26, was convicted in November on three counts of attempted voluntary manslaughter. The Criminal Court jury acquitted him on more serious charges of attempted first-degree murder.

During the standoff on Sept. 24, 2014, the defendant – who already had fired a shot through the windshield of an occupied police vehicle - waived a pistol at officers as he stood on his porch in the 3200 block of Lyndale Ave. near Holmes and Summer.

He pointed the gun at his head, then pointed it at officers and fired shots in the direction of two groups of officers. At that point, officers returned fire, wounding Chica-Arguenta and ending the standoff.

The defendant’s live-in girlfriend told police he had fired three shots at her inside the home before officers arrived.

On Friday, Judge Bobby Carter commended the officers for their professional handling of the matter even as their lives were endangered by Chica-Arguenta waiving his pistol on the porch and pointing it in their direction.

The defendant testified in trial that he was depressed and was trying to get police to kill him. A crisis intervention officer was involved in trying to negotiate the standoff peacefully.

“The defendant put these officers in a horrible spot,” the judge said. “He had no concern for their lives or his own. They showed remarkable restraint, but there’s no medal for that, unfortunately."

Chica-Arguenta has been in custody since the incident and has nearly enough jail credit – 30 percent of his sentence - to be considered for parole. He is not in the United States legally, however, and may have to meet with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The case was handled by Asst. Dist. Atty. Glenda Adams of the DA’s Domestic Violence Prosecution Unit which prosecutes felony cases of domestic assault and homicide committed by intimate partners.

The unit also works closely with the Shelby County Family Safety Center to provide services and assistance to victims and their families.

Errol Johnson, 44, was convicted last month of criminally negligent homicide and aggravated child neglect in the 2012 death of his bed-ridden daughter, Andrea Ruth.

She suffered from asthma, hypertension and obesity, but Johnson, his wife and a health care aide neglected or ignored her fragile medical state and her need for medical care, according to investigators.

A Criminal Court jury was told last month that the young girl developed gangrene in her feet so advanced that bones were visible and that first responders saw maggots beneath dirty bandages on her feet.Andrea Ruth lost some 50 pounds between May 2011 and November 2012 when she died in the family’s Millington home.

Jurors convicted Johnson of criminally negligent homicide and aggravated child neglect involving both serious bodily injury of a vulnerable child and circumstances that were heinous, atrocious and cruel.

Judge Bobby Carter sentenced Johnson to 22 years in prison for aggravated child neglect and the maximum two years for the homicide. The sentences are to run concurrently.

The case was investigated by agents from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and by the Millington Police Department, and prosecuted by chief prosecutor Carrie Shelton and Asst. Dist. Atty. Gen. Abby Wallace, both of the DA’s Special Victims Unit (SVU).

The unit prosecutes cases of child sexual abuse and severe physical abuse of child victims; rape and aggravated rape of adult victims, and abuse of elderly and vulnerable adults.